Kristjansson paces Blue and Gold after first 18 holes of competition

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico (Feb. 17, 2013) – The ETSU men’s golf team wrapped up first round play at the Puerto Rico Classic on Sunday, and the Bucs are sitting in 10th after posting a team score of 296 from the River Course at the Rio Mar Country Club.

The Bucs are facing strong competition this week as the field is stacked with nine ranked teams who are placed in the top-50 of Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, along with six golfers in the top-30. Overall, fifth-ranked Alabama is atop the team leaderboard, while Clemson’s Billy Kennerly holds a one-shot lead entering Monday’s second round. Kennerly posted a 5-under-par 67, while the Crimson Tide registered a team score of 9-under 279.

Alabama carries a one-shot lead over No. 40 Oklahoma and has a two-stroke advantage against No. 19 Clemson, while a trio of players are one shot back of Kennerly. Eduardo Castiello (Oklahoma), Austin Smotherman (SMU), and Beau Titsworth (Oklahoma) are all at 4-under.

Freshmen Gudmundur Kristjansson (Reykjavik, Iceland) and Chris Hickman (Centreville, Md.) paced the Blue and Gold on Sunday. Kristjansson fired a 1-under-par 71 to move into a for 15th and Hickman – who is coming off a top-10 finish at the Sea Best Invitational – is in a seven-way tie for 21st after carding an ever-par 72.

Meanwhile, the Bucs finished the day at 8-over following the first 18 holes of play. ETSU is ahead of Big Ten foes No. 32 Northwestern, Michigan, Ohio State and Purdue, along with North Carolina State.

The second round begins at 8 a.m. Monday morning, with ETSU being paired with No. 17 SMU and No. 31 North Carolina.

For more information on Buccaneer men’s golf, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men’s golf link.